More and more artists are utilizing the MetroCard as a material to create art. The latest to come to my attention is Thomas McKean, who creates sculptures, mosaics and other interesting little trinkets out of the card.

The artist had this to say in a statement about his medium:

Usually we swipe them in a hurry as we pass through the turnstile, hoping we haven’t missed the subway. Or dip them as we enter a bus, hoping there’s still enough money on them to pay for the ride. But we barely notice them; they’re as omnipresent and invisible as pigeons. I stopped to look at them one day and haven’t looked back yet. In their limited palette, I’ve found an expanding world of images, colours, ideas. Mosaics, collages, portraits, abstracts, constructions, dioramas, combination drawing and collages, all these keep pouring forth from this little object, not much bigger than two by three inches.

McKlean has used thousands of MetroCards for his work and he says finding them is part of the experience. ”Perhaps because I’m from New York, and this is my world, without setting out to, I’m creating a world from one of its iconic symbols.”

Lots more after the jump!

If you would like to check out more work by Thomas McKean (of course you do!), visit his blog.